每日英语听力

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09/17/18

Paul Manafort has turned state's evidence. He pleaded guilty to two felony charges and has agreed to cooperate with the special counsel's investigation.

His lawyer addressed reporters yesterday. It's a tough day for Mr. Manafort, but he's accepted responsibility.

He wanted to make sure that his family was able to remain safe and live a good life. NPR's justice correspondent Carrie Johnson joins us in the studio. Carrie, thanks so much for being with us.

Hi, Scott. A trial - potential jurors were getting ready to report to the courthouse. What happened?

Yeah. Manafort, in a surprise, pleaded guilty to two felonies - conspiracy against the United States and conspiracy to obstruct justice. Scott, that includes avoiding taxes, lying to the Justice Department, failing to register his lobbying work for a political party in Ukraine.

And then there's the witness tampering after Manafort was already indicted. The prosecutor - Andrew Weissmann, spent more than a half-hour describing all the incriminating evidence in court yesterday.

The judge said it was the longest and most-detailed summary she'd ever heard in her courtroom. Bottom line, Paul Manafort now faces a maximum of 10 years in prison. Remember, he's 69 years old.

From what you can tell, Carrie, is this a better deal for Robert Mueller, the special counsel, or for Paul Manafort? This looks like a significant advance for the special counsel team - yet another guilty plea in an investigation that's not even a year and a half old.

And they've got Paul Manafort to forfeit a ton of property in money. He's giving up his estate in The Hamptons, his condo in Trump Tower in New York, bank accounts, an insurance policy.

That adds up to tens of millions of dollars - maybe enough to pay for the Mueller investigation, as one blogger, Marcy Wheeler, has noted. And I understand there's language that if he gets a pardon. . .

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